Your Help is Invaluable
It was very encouraging to witness the concern of people in our area express their concern for those exposed to not only the victims but also those who were exposed to the frigid weather we experienced during the Christmas holidays.
Expressions included provisions for material needs, food and supplies, thoughts, and prayers for those victimized by the critical incidents. Thankfully, there were few, if any reports of anyone seriously impacted by the sub-freezing weather; but our neighboring counties, especially Coosa, experienced some extreme hardships, including extensive damage to houses, and other buildings. As I understand it, there may have been some injuries reported but no life-threating injuries or deaths. The same can’t be said for Selma and Autauga County.
I would especially like to thank the individuals and churches responding to the needs of those seeking shelter from the cold. There were five shelters opened – Childersburg, Lincoln, Munford, Sylacauga, and Talladega; but I believe there were perhaps less than a dozen seeking shelter. There are reasons why some of those for whom several expressed great concern, viz., the homeless, and shall be addressed in another posting.
Volunteers Are Needed!
What I would like to share with you seeks to take advantage of the attention created by recent weather events, especially the multitudes of tornadoes ripping across our state from Mobile to Moundville with a heavy concentration stretching from Selma, across Autauga, Coosa, and Tallapoosa Counties, and extending into Georgia.
The Critical Incident Network (CIRN) is designed to recruit, train, and deploy volunteers as what is described as a sub-function of local, state, and federal response to critical incidents. It is not CIRN’s intent to duplicate the efforts of local search and rescue squads, which are primarily designed to respond to critical incidents as they take place. While CIRN does respond to incidents as occurring by providing weather alerts and passing along other important information, viz., open shelters locations, chief focus is upon post-incident recovery, a time for digging out of the rubble and providing services geared to meeting immediate needs of those impacted by the critical incident.
As FEMA has indicated in past incidents,[i] trained volunteers provide a valuable and immediate response to local needs. The adage, “Volunteers are the first to respond and the last to leave” expresses the importance of local response. While showing up for service is important, a trained volunteer group can provide organized, effective, and efficient services in response to critical incidents.
The types of services needed, and for which CIRN provides training, include Volunteer Reception Centers, Donation Warehousing and Distribution Management, Points of Distribution of Basic Resources, Shelter Management and Staffing, and others.
The variety of services also includes a variety of opportunities to volunteer. While C.E.R.T. (Community Emergency Response Team) provides aid to search and rescue operations, there are many other valuable services you can provide. If you can answer a phone, register volunteers and volunteer groups, keep records, provide care for children and the elderly, care for animals and pets, clean yards, and so many other important services and aids, you can volunteer.
We are a Community Responding to Community Needs!
You can contact Chaplain Mark Ledbetter by email at Critical.incidentnetwork@gmail.com
For more information visit our website at www.CIRNetwork.net